Shut up and do the impossible
Levels of effort:
- Tsuyoku naritai: I want to become stronger — keep improving on previous failures.
- Isshokenmei: Make a desperate effort — all-out, as if life at stake. Strong efforts often yield only mediocre results on important matters.
- Make an extraordinary effort: try non-default ways, leave comfort zone, take real risks.
When the problem is impossible, the response is "Shut up and do the impossible!"
"Impossible" usually means "I see no way" or "beyond current human ability," not a strict proof. Studying it can make it seem less impossible.
The goal is not to make an effort (you can succeed at "making an extraordinary effort" without winning). The goal is to achieve the outcome.
This creates tension. People flee it by saying "I tried" or denying data when the impossible was actually accomplished (as with the AI-Box Experiment Eliezer won twice).
Your goal is to get out of the box (solve the impossible thing), not to try.